Look up for the last (and best) meteor shower of the year.
There’s something magical about meteor showers, a sky of shooting stars twinkling across the sky. It seems a fitting way to end 2025, so luckily, Australia will be treated to one last show: The Geminid meteor shower.
What is the Geminid meteor shower?
The Geminds meteor shower hike is the ultimate nighttime event. (Image: Getty Images / Craig Taylor)
Several night sky organisations rank the Geminids at the top of their lists, like the International Meteor Organization, which calls the meteor shower the “best and most reliable of the major annual showers presently observable". The shower originates from the asteroid 3200 Phaethon, which NASA has stated orbits the Earth in approximately 1.4 years.
Not only is it one of the brightest celestial displays, but the Geminid meteor shower is occasionally the colour of fireworks: yellow, green, blue and red. This is thanks to the various metallic elements in the debris from the asteroid – think sodium, magnesium and calcium. These elements burn in different colours as they vaporise in Earth’s atmosphere.
When to watch
The shower can flash yellow, blue, red and green. (Image: Getty/ bjdlzx)
While the shower has already started, and will continue until 24 December, its peak performance is coming up. The predicted peak (aka when the meteors will be shining brightest in the night sky) is between 14-15 December.
This is thanks to a waning crescent moon that won’t interfere with a dark sky backdrop for the Geminids to put on their show.
Where to watch
Thredo’s summer hike series takes in the best of the night skies – from meteors to super full moons.
As with all night sky events, a clear, dark sky is the dream. According to EarthSky, when the conditions are just right – ie, you’re under a dark sky with no moon – you might catch 120 Geminid meteors per hour. So yes, you probably want to head out of the city, with all its light pollution. In Australia, you’ll also need a clear view of the eastern sky.
A pollution solution? Join Thredbo’s Geminids Meteor Shower Hike. This unique adventure takes hikers on a guided journey to the summit of Mt Kosciuszko, climbing steadily as day turns to night, until stopping to watch the natural light show in astonishing clarity at the peak. The 13-kilometre Grade 3 round-trip is challenging but rewarding.
Rather go it alone? Try designated Dark Sky Parks like Warrumbungle National Park in NSW, or head to as remote a location as you can get to.
Want to see more stories from Australian Traveller in your Google search results?
Tick the box next to "Australian Traveller". That's it.
Kassia Byrnes is the Native Content Editor for Australian Traveller and International Traveller. She's come a long way since writing in her diary about family trips to Grandma's. After graduating a BA of Communication from University of Technology Sydney, she has been writing about her travels (and more) professionally for over 10 years for titles like AWOL, News.com.au, Pedestrian.TV, Body + Soul and Punkee. She's addicted to travel but has a terrible sense of direction, so you can usually find her getting lost somewhere new around the world. Luckily, she loves to explore and have new adventures – whether that’s exploring the backstreets, bungee jumping off a bridge or hiking for days. You can follow her adventures on Instagram @probably_kassia.
From rainforest walks and scenic drives to historic gold-rush towns and standout regional dining experiences, you can find it all in West Gippsland.
Hover over West Gippsland on Google Earth and you’ll see vast tracts of land spread out like green velveteen around the Toorongo Falls Reserve. It’s a landscape that feels almost impossibly lush for a region sitting little more than an hour from Melbourne.
Track southeast in late autumn and early winter and you’ll see pockets of the Mt Baw Baw Plateau dusted in snow. In addition to the forests of mountain ash veined with creeks and rivers, there are pastures and farmland cross-stitched together to form pretty patchworks.
But West Gippsland isn’t defined by scenery alone: in addition to its awe-inspiring nature, a Venn diagram of the region includes gold-rush history and great culinary experiences. Spend a long weekend here and it quickly becomes clear how often these three overlap.
Getting there
Spend the weekend eating and exploring in West Gippsland. (Credit: Messmates Dining)
Getting to West Gippsland involves as easy drive – it’s just over an hour out of Melbourne along the Monash Freeway.
Not driving? Catch the train from Melbourne on the Gippsland line, terminating at either Traralgon or Bairnsdale, and hop off at Warragul or Drouin.
Visit historic villages
Wander into Australia’s Gold Rush history at Walhalla. (Credit: Rob Blackburn)
The West Gippsland region is on the Traditional Lands of the Kulin and Kurnai nations, specifically linked to the Bunurong, Gunaikurnai and Wurundjeri Peoples, whose connection to Country stretches back thousands of years.
European settlement occurred in the 19th century as timber cutters, farmers and gold seekers pushed into the region’s dense forests. Small towns grew around sawmills and railway lines, and many of those gold rush settlements, timber towns and railway villages still shape the character of the region today.
The most evocative of these is Walhalla Historic Township, a remarkably preserved gold-rush township tucked deep in the mountains. In the late 1800s, it was one of Victoria’s richest goldfields. Today visitors can step inside that history at the Long Tunnel Extended Gold Mine, where underground tours reveal the scale of the mining operation that once powered the town’s prosperity. Nearby, the Walhalla Goldfields Railway retraces part of the original narrow-gauge line through the valley, offering a slow journey past forest and river scenery.
Further west, Noojee is a classic mountain village. It’s surrounded by dense forest and waterfalls and has become a natural base for exploring the Baw Baw region. Just outside town, Noojee Trestle Bridge stands as one of West Gippsland’s most striking relics of the rail era. The towering wooden structure is the tallest surviving trestle bridge in Victoria and today forms the centrepiece of an easy scenic walk with wide views across the valley.
Catch your own lunch at Alpine Trout Farm. (Credit: Nicky Cawood)
At Alpine Trout Farm near Noojee, visitors can fish for trout in mountain-fed ponds before enjoying the catch prepared fresh onsite. It’s a simple experience that reflects the area’s long connection to the surrounding waterways.
Back in Warragul, the region’s main service town, the story shifts from heritage to modern regional life. With galleries, restaurants and sweeping views across the rolling farmland of Gippsland, the town has become a lively hub linking the district’s past with its evolving food and cultural scene. Drive through the town and you’ll find heritage buildings, old pubs and weatherboard cottages that hint at the area’s early days as a frontier landscape.
In other towns the past survives in quieter ways – a historic hall here, a century-old bakery there.
Even simple roadside stops can feel cinematic in West Gippsland. The region also delivers plenty of opportunities to lace up your walking shoes.
One of the region’s most rewarding nature escapes lies just outside Noojee at Toorongo Falls Reserve. A network of walking tracks winds through the cool-temperate rainforest where towering mountain ash trees filter the light and the air smells of rich, damp earth. The 2.2-kilometre trail to the viewing platform overlooking Toorongo Falls is short, but spectacular, as the water cascades down over moss-covered rock faces into a cool, green gully in Little Toorongo River.
Further north, the Mount Baw Baw Alpine Resort offers year-round adventures. In winter, the mountain attracts skiers and snowboarders. The warmer months are just as compelling, with scenic drives to see alpine wildflowers, mountain bike trails and panoramic hiking routes that open across the plateau.
Cyclists and walkers looking for a more relaxed pace can follow the Rokeby Neerim Rail Trail, which traces a former railway line through farmland and small Gippsland villages. The mostly flat trail passes rolling paddocks, creeks and historic bridges, making it an easy way to drop it down a gear when exploring the countryside.
Taste the best eats of West Gippsland
Taste the best of the region at Hogget Kitchen.
For many travellers, the real drawcards of West Gippsland are the food and wine. The region sits in the heart of Victoria’s fertile dairy country, and that agricultural backdrop has helped shape a dining scene where seasonal produce and local provenance take centre stage.
Hogget Kitchen has helped put Warragul firmly on the radar for serious regional dining in West Gippsland. Here, head chef and owner Trevor Perkins runs the kitchen alongside well-known winemakers William (Bill) Downie and Pat Sullivan. Hogget Kitchen lives up to its promise of exceptional destination dining; what lands on the table depends largely on what nearby farms have harvested that week as well as a wine list from Wild Dog Winery and other Gippsland producers.
Warragul is also where you’ll find Messmates Dining where the kitchen team is led by Michelin-trained chefs. The Euro-leaning bistro and wine bar brings a polished edge to the local dining scene using produce sourced from across West Gippsland.
For something more casual, the century-old Noojee Hotel is the kind of hub that every traveller dreams of finding after a long drive. Expect generous pub classics served on the sunny deck in summer or beside the crackle of a log fire in winter. Nearby, rustic Toolshed Bar, Bistro & Cabins is the place to go for a wood-fired pizza topped with smoked local trout paired with Gippsland wine, making it a rewarding stop for lunch or an overnight stay.
Time your visit with the Truffle Festival
Food lovers visiting in winter should consider timing their trip to coincide with Noojee Truffle Festival, running from 10 July to 2 August 2026. The inaugural event celebrates the region’s emerging truffle industry with tastings, special menus and events built around one of winter’s most prized ingredients.
